1. Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline

The story moves between contemporary Maine and Depression-era Minnesota. Powerful story with tremendous range of emotions. Beautifully written.

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2.  State of Wonder by Ann Patchett

A psychological journey in time for the protagonist. Strong female characters and an exotic setting.

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3. House of Spirits by Isabel Allende

A tumultuous epic which chronicles four generations of two extraordinary families and laced with magical realism.

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4. Snow Falling on Cedars by David Guterson

Best depiction of the internment camps and the treatment of the Japanese.

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5. Cutting for Stone by Abraham Verghese

A riveting novel of an enthralling family saga of Africa and America, doctors and patients, exile and home.

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6. Devil in the White City by Eric Larson

This is a non-fiction book that reads like a novel. The combination of the building the 1893 World’s Fair in Chicago and a prolific serial killer. 

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7. Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

The true confessions of one of Japan’s most celebrated geisha. It’s written by a man but he’s able to capture the voice of woman beautifully.

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8. The Marriage of Opposites by Alice Hoffman

Fictional account of painter Pizzarro’s life on the island of St. Thomas. The island come alive with her vivid descriptions. A tale of conflict between personal desire and social constraints. 

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9. The Street of a Thousand Blossoms by Gail Tsukiyama

Chronicles lives of two brothers before, during and after WWII in Japan.

One is studying to be a sumo wrestler and the other a mask maker. 

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10. The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls

Memoir that recounts the unconventional, poverty-stricken upbringing Jeannette and her siblings had at the of the dysfunctional parents.

 

Additional

Equally Great Reads:

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​THE GREAT ALONE by Kristen Hannah. This book offers adventure, suspense, and romance. It’s a story of a family survival in Alaska. 

 

THE OTHER EINSTEIN by Marie Benedict. The book is about the brilliant wife of Albert Einstein How much she contributed the science and given no credit. 

 

LADY TAN’S CIRCLE OF WOMEN by Lisa See. The history of Chinese culture and feet binding. 

 

THE ONLY WOMAN IN THE ROOM by Marie Benedict. This book is about the actress Hedy Lamar. Not only was she beautiful but highly intelligentt. She came up with a machine that could break codes during WWII but never used because she was a woman. 

 

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Leonard’s Swans by Karen Essex

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Montana 1948 by Larry Watson

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The Promise of Light by Paul Watkins

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Secret Lives of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

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Book Thief by Markus Zusak

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The Light between Oceans by M.L.Stedman

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Snow Child by Eowyn Ivey

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Sarah’s Key by Tatiana de Rosnay 

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Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

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The Rent Collector by Camron Wright

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Third Life of Grange Copland by Alice Walker

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The Four Winds by Kristin Hannah